Cement loading, controlling, measuring, and counting apparatus for concrete mixers



5 Sheets-Shea FOR CONCRETE MIXERS Fil'ed May 6, 1926 April 10, 1928.

CEMENT LOADING, CONTROLLING, MEASURING, AND COUNTING APPARATUS April 10, 1928. 1,665,565

J. F. R085 7 CEMENT LOADING, CONTROLLING, MEASURING, AND COUNTING APPARATUS 6 FOR CONCRETE MIXERS Filed May 6, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aprll 10, 1928. 1,665,565

J. F. ROBB CEMENT LOADING, CONTROLLING, MEASURING, AND COUNTING APPARATUS FOR CONCRETE MIXERS Filed May 6. 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Apnl 10, 1928. I 1,665,565 J. F. ROBB CEMENT LOADING, CONTROLLING, MEASURING, AND COUNTING APPARATUS FOR CONCRETE MIXERS Filed May 6, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 16,119

CEMENT LOADING, CON

J. F. ROBB TROLLING, MEASURING, AND COUNTING APPARATUS FOR CONCRETE MIXERS Filed May 6. 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Apr. 10, 1928. v

. UNITED STATES I 1. 6 .5 -PATENT- OFFICE.

JOHN I. 30338, or cnnvamma narenraonro, Assrenoa T0 xoanmeoonm, or

-. -mwamn, WISCONSIN, a coaroaarrou. Y

calm manure, CONTROLLING, Museum, mm columns arrmrus ron concur-1m mxans. v

Application flied lay a, 1926. Sci-i151 at. 107,237.

Concrete mixing machines today are used' in various ways, on building construction, pavement or road construction, and in practically all concrete engineering operations. 6 The operation of these machines requires close ins cction for ensuring the integrity of the-ultimate product. For instance, the time of mixingis controlled, the proportioning of aggregates closely supervised, the

till amount of water in each batch handled is varied as necessary and for best results depending on moisture and sand, etc., and the cement used carefully measured manually by counting of bags for'each batch mixed. On certain municipal, State and Federal Government controlled jobs, inspectors are employed to see to accurate measuring of cement, and otherwise closely supervise mix? ing operations. N

By my invention, inspectionis done away with, or minimized to a negligible degree, by mechanically measuring and registering the cement'control, and also mechanically controlling the cement and water ratio of batches of aggregates handled by the mixer. The measurement, is positive, accurate, and the registrationresults are or may be'under lock and key. Once ,machine is set and adjustment noted by the in cto'r, the inspection may be made peri call? at leisure. The contractor is advantag by having automatic control of cement, and cement and 1 water, and by having. complete registration of all work and cement handled by his mixingmachine. For a full comprehension of this invention,;I 'shall briefly refer to certain practise in use todayin handling con rete aggregates for mixing. and laying down, aspavement.

i Machines of the type employed for the above purpose are ordinarily known as concrete =m1xmg avers and generally afre' of the type disclosed by such patents as that of E. H.

Lichtenberg, #1,141,470, issued .June 1st, 5 1915, and J.'-F; Robb, #1570407, issued March 1st, 1921, and embody a portable traction support carrying-a concrete mixer, a'

. loading skip -for hoisting solid .of cement, sand and stone to charge thesame 0 into the mixer, and a boom and bucket or 1 other distributor"by,which the said aggro! g. gatesmixed with water, are placed upon the sub-gradeto makethepavement.

This 'inventicn dea'ls priinarilywith the roper mixture.

' cement that are combin J I i 7 handling of thecement and water which able type machines" for concrete mixing pur..-

poses, but is equally adapted for use in connection with stationary concrete mixers such from which the concrete in mixed condition willbe taken oil to the site where it is to be used.- The place of use may be a subigrade where a pavement is beinglaid or-it as may beoperated in a central mixing plant may he a building or some concrete work that is being constructed.

Now it has heretofore been the practise to measure the cement forming a part of the concrete aggregates largely by manual labor. Thus in larger jobs, two or more men will be employed to open the bags of cement, each of which'contai-ns a cubic foot of the material, and either discharge these bags in a motor vehicle which is to carry the aggregates to the mixer, as in paving operations, or the cement is deposited by the men in a loading ski direct, in wheelbarrows, or

conveniently combined. with the sand and stone. -When the cement, sand and stone are together they are dumped into the mixer by suitable charging means, usually aloading skip and simultaneously they are supplied with the proper proportion of water to give "T e most important m any receptac e, that will enable it to be' ingredient of a .batch of concrete is the cement and-several. b gs orfcubic' feet is the customary charge or mixers of any A convenient means Qof counting these bagssis greatly to:be deshed for determining the ultimate integrity of themix and tq generally facilitate kee i tab Ion the amount of cement used upon a'1ob. The measuring and convevigig ma.- chine of this invention is designed to meet the above noted requirement and comprises a loading or active g count the number of l or cubic feet of with each batch of device that will aggregates that are handled by -the mixer. l V

A ,feature of primary importance of my present invention is the combining with the is machine itself of the cement con- 'veying or m ensuring feature or mechanism,

which the cement mgans acts .and. the interlockingfof the controls by along with the charging device or skip and the water supply means.

In connection with the water supply means as used with my cement measuring machine, another feature of primary importance of the invention is involved. It is generally accepted today that if the cement and water ingredients of a concrete batch are controlled in proper proportions, the remainder of the batch comprising sand and stone maybe combined in suitable proportions to make a workable hatch without fear of the ultimate concrete being of defective construction. 'In line with this accepted theory and practise, that is being put into use considerably today I 'a:sociate my cement measuring means with the water supply means in a peculiar way so that the sup ply of wateris directly proportioned to the amount of cement which is fed to the mixing machine. entirely new to employ acement measuring device'thatrmechanically handles the cement which may be manuallyfedor otherwise supplied thereto in conjunction with a concrete mixer; also with water supply means, and therefore I desire the claims to these features to be interpreted in the light of this novel phase of the invention.

of a cement measuring means consisting' In addition to the foregoing my invention contemplates certain novel mechanisms for supplying cement to my measuring and loading device that works in conjunction with the mixing machine, together with a novel association of the measuring device for the loading skip means of the machine, or any equivalent means, establishing control phases of operation between the two. 7

lVith the foregoing in view, I note. that my invention comprehends the employment preferably of a bucket type loader, the buckets of which are adapted each to receive the contents of a bag of cement, the loader being mounted upon the support for the mixing machine, being automatically operable under the influence of the loading or discharging skip, and being auton ati cally stopped when the cement hopper that supplies the skip or mixing machine is filled. With the cement hopper may be associated the water receptacle or tank operated auto- 'matically incident to the filling and discharging of said hopper for purposes pre-- viously outlined. A batchmeter such as ordinarily employed for mlxmg machines is availed of and 'is used to coact with certain features of the water supply mechanism.

Referring to the drawings of my invention, I briefly describe the figures as fol- J Figure 1" a concrete mixing paving machine of the portable type illustrating my invention adapted thereto, my mechanism proportioning theamount of loose cement So'far as I am advised, it is Figure 3is an elevation of the trip hoption of the upper portion of the conveyor I and the clutch control therefor.

Figure 6 is a sectional View through the conveyer supporting frame and one of the buckets showing more clearly the weighing mechanism therefor.

Figure 7 is a detailed perspective view of a portion of one of the U-shaped supporting members and one of the weight determining sprlngs.

Figure 8- is a vertical sectional View through the bag counting and control mechanism.

Figure 9" is an enlarged fragmentary sectional View taken at right angles to Figure 8 showing more clearly the instrumentalities for returning the counting disc to starting position. a

Figure 10 is a fragmentary detailperspective view showing the actuating means for swinging the spout.

Figure 11 is a detailed view of the cnd portion of the spout showing its door and the cooperation of the opening lever therefor with the side of the skip.

Figure 12 is a somewhat diagrammatic rear View of the upper portion of a concrete mixing machine embodying my cement measuring loader and showing a modification of the invention wherein the water supply of the machine is controlled efficiently to properly proportion the amount of cement and water used for a particular hatch, the same being done automatically.

Zllz'ming machine.

of the aggregates charged into the mixer 2 by an audible signal and by unlocking of instrumcntalities the discharge chute of the mixer, and if 'with a number ofvloadirig buckets 17, eacha necessary by actually operating said chute ,bucket havingthe capacity to receive at least somewhat after the manner indicated in-the one cubic foot of cement from the hopper 14'.

Robb chute patent previously identified. The buckets are seen best in Figures 5 and, 6 i The skip t will be hoisted by the usual hoistas being yieldably mounted upon the coning cable means 5 and said skip is pivoted veyer belt 16 by means of spring supports to the frame 1 at 6 by means of-a'suppoit 18, the detail construction of which is shown ing bracket or arm 7 attached to said skip. inlFiguiliies 5, 6 and 7.

Y I tsu ces to state that when the buckets 08mm 27 13/ means 17 are empty, the springs of the spring supports 18 hold the empty buckets slightly upchine near the boom and bucket attachment raised as in the dotted line positions in 33 is a platform Son which the man who Figures 5 and 6.1.lVhen a bucket 17 has been feeds the cement to the measuring device filled with its measured quantity of cement", may stand and which platform may also be the weight of the cement causes the bucket used to receive, and support a number of to lower to itsi'ull line position of F igure'5. bags of cementtor they may' be loaded di- This action is somewhat important because rectly onto the platform 8 from a motor projecting from aside of the buckets is an vehicle bringing them up. from the supply arm 19 which is arran ed to operate in va.

point to the mixing machine, orif desirede path. of movement enabling. it to strike a as indicated in Figure 2, the bags. of cement trip lever 2O near the upper end of the loader Ina be conveyed to the platform 8 by an or conveyer, when the;bucket' 17 carrying 'en less conveyer 10 that leads laterally from said arm is weighted down by the contents the mixing machine frame 1 a suitable dis thereof. It the bucket is empty the arm 19' tance. This distance may be to the side of passes freely by the trip lever 20 so as not the road'if-the machine is laying pavement, to actuate the latter. The trip lever 20 is or toa cementsupply compartment if the designed to operate certain registering mechanism is in a central mixing plant. 'Or mechanism which counts the number of bags the bags may be skidded down an inclined of cement that are handled by the loader chute in-a central mixing'plant to supply the operator at the platform 8.

OemeM measuring device.

and therefore handledby the whole mixing 95, machine and also counts the number of batches of cement handled. By batch of cement I mean the number of bags which fre- From the platform 8 the cement feeder quently Varie dependent upon the size of or feeders, one or two men, will feed the the mixer,- which is necessary tobe comcement intoa movable su ly hopper 11, see bined with a proportionate batch .-="of sand Figure 3, adapted to shlft transversely of and stone and water. By counting the the supporting frame wo k 1 ofth ma hin batches of the cement, the number of batches and comprising three compartments A, B of aggregates handled by the machine will chine and while it may be moved by hand, it 17 as described is to is shown as automatically operated in the use from operat g the reg stermg means when of the machine, the automatic actuating the u e a lo o Ji e with ine means to be described later on.

and C This supply hopper 11 is really supbe registered for obvious reasons and it is .105 ported on rollers or wheels 12 traveling on deslrable to maintain a notation thereof. a tracks 13 arranged transversely of-the'ma The reason for the actlon of the buckets prevent the buckets Atv this bag or cubic foot of cement. Referringto pointit sufiices-to state that the hopper 12 Figure 5,it will be seen that the trip l is movableabove a cement feed hopper 14 20 is pivoted at 21 and its axis carr es an so that each compartment A, B or C. may arm 22' attached to a rod 23 extending to a supplyits contents tothe hopper 14.;

From .the hopper 14 which is of suflicient certaln of the counting mechanism 1s locate'di size to hold pre erably' a cubic foot or bag. The lever 24 carries a pawl 26 apranged' to I of cement only,.the cement isjadapted to be engage a ratchet operating disc 2 equipped upon 9.. ectin cf-thgmachine. The endless bucket loader which are to makeup a batch thereof for a comprises an endless belt'or chain device, 16 batch of concrete. Assoc ated with the qp'en which inclinesnpwardlyj from the boom and are numbers runnmg consecutively wa'point supplied by opening of the bottom doorlt. with'a seriesflzof pin or stud receiving openof the hopper, to-my measuring device which; 28; A trip pin 29 is adapted to be ad-i r20 cpnsists' of an endless bucket loader mounted justed so as to be'vreceived' a selectedone suitable supporting frame 15 prm of the openings 28, 1ts posltion bemg confrom one side of-theframe'work 1 trolled by the number 01? bags'of cement bucket attachment end -of the machine to and by-th e disk 27,. each number adjacent tothe' upper diagonally'opbeing visible ata sight openln'g 30- inth'e portion of the frame 1. The endless lte casing25. Gooperatiye with the disc 27 i is conveyor belt or chain 16 will be equipped a detent pawl 31 to temporarily detain the 1a,

lever 24 supported on the case 25. in'which a disc 27 after it has been moved one increment of its registering movement. Also co-- operative with the disc 27 is a helical return spring 32 to restore the disc to a zero positioni The detent pawl 31 holds the. disc 27 in the position to which it is advanced by the action of the operating pawl 26 until in the rising movement of the loading skip 4 at a certain point 1n said movement of the ing rod 36 that rocks the lever 37, (-see Fig ures 1. to 8), thereby raising the detent pawl 31 and releasing the disc 27 to permit it to zeroize. i Y

The operating pin 29 carried by the disc 27 is in the sixth bag position in Figure 8. By this is meant that whensix of the buckets 17, filled with cement, have been elevated by the conveyer 16 so as to trip the lever 20 and dump into the hopper 38- s'ix bags of cement, equivalent to six cubic feet, a' clutch throwout lever 39, see Figure 8, in the casing 25, will have been struckby the pin 29 and rocked downwards to thereby rock'the arm 40 which, as best seen in Figure .1, leads downwardly from .the register casing 25 to a bell crank lever 41 having connection with the clutch .throw'out lever 42 by means of a rod or bar 43, see Figure 5.

The clutch throwqut lever 42 is adapted to operate a clutch yok'e 44 that shifts the operating clutchfor establishing a driving connection from the power means of the mixer, to the cement loader or measuring device. The clutch aforesaid is carried by a shaft 45. see Figure 1. and said shaft 45 is adapted to drive a sprocket chain 46 which connects the shaft l5 to a-shaft 47 at the lower end of the conveyer 16. As the details of the clutch means are uuin'iportant to the inven tion the same are only conventionally illustrated and referred to.

It will thus be seen that by the action of the measuring device or loader when a pre-' determined batch of cement has been dumped into the hopper 38, the number of bags in the batch will have been registered at the sight opening of the registercasing and an audible signal 48. see Figure 8,

will have been sounded by the action of a tappet 49 with which the knockout lever 39- coacts by means of a hook50, and the feeding of cement into the hopper 38 will havebeen discontinued by a throwing out of the clutch acted on by the clutch yoke 44'. Moreover, at this time, a batch of cement will have been" registered on the batch register 25 which is located beneaththe bag counting register 25 previously described. The register '25 is actuated by the downward movement of the rod 40 which connects the arm 40 with the lever 41 .of the clutch throwout actuating connecting means. Skip control from measuring device.-

It is notable that as a part of the general mechanism of my mixing machine, I use a control lever 51, see Figure 5, by which the operation of raising the skip 4 through the cable means 5 is controlled. The said lever 51 is prevented from operating to raise the skip until after the-movement of the con a'eyer 16 and its buckets 17 have stopped.

The interlock for this purpose is found in Figure 4 as comprising a locking catch 52 on a rock shaft 53 that has an arm 54 beneath one armof the'bell crank 41. Thus when the clutch lever 42 is operated to throw out the clutch means and stop the movement of the conveyer the rock' shaft 53 will be simultaneously operated to raise the catch member '52, release the lever 51 and permit the skip 4 to be hoisted.

Discharge of measured cement.

The cement batch hopper 38 has, accordingto the foregoing description been filled with a batch of cement of proper proportion to be mixed with sand and stone in the skip 4; The said batch of cement is. retained in the hopper 38 by means of a bottom closing door 55 near the lowr end of said hopper, said door adaptedto rock downwardly to open or discharge the hopper. Normally while the skip 4 is in its lowered position, as seen in Figure 1, the pivot, bracket 7 of the skip rests upon the horizontal arm 56 of a vertical actuating rod 57 normally impelled to rise in its bearing in a bracket arm 58 by means of'a spring 59, see Figure 1. The rod 57 is connected by an arm with the pivotal axis of the door 55 and as the skip 4 is started in its upward movement it will open the door 55. The charge of cement in the hopper 38 will thus pass by gravitating movement into a spout 60 that is pivoted for movement about the vertical axis 61 and communicated with the lower hopper 38. The spout 60 may or may not be .used. and I say this because the hopper 38 may be arranged to discharge directly in-' to the skip 4 as is shown in Figure 12, or it may be arranged to discharge-into the stationary charging chute 62 that feeds the concrete aggregates into the mixer 2. The particular arrangement is not material to the invention but as shown in Figure 2 and Figure .1, I do avail of a movable spout 60. to

comparatively quickly, it will be evident durend of the III ' 4 after the cement is'supplied thereto I may a coiled spring 65'encircling the. axis mom-4 ing the initial rising movement of the arrange for movement of the spout60 from its position above the skip. To; this end, I

provide on'the lower end of the 'pin or axis 61 of the spout 60, a lateral arm 6.3 engage- 1 -able by a cam 64 on the bracket 7 or the skip, see Figure 10. As the skip starts .to rise under the lifting action of the cables 5'-, the cam 64 escapes from the arm 63 and her 61 causes the latter -to turn and thereby carry the spout from the pathof' movement of the skip. On return downward movement of-the skip; this same arm 63 is struck by the cam 64 and the spout is turned into the position from which itv will discharge into the skip from abovethe same.

' Of course at the timethe cement passesinto the skip '4 from the spout 60 or from= the'hop'per 38, directly, the sand and the stone will already have beenreceived by the skip being placed therein from the motor vehicle or otherwise deposited according to whether my machine is used o ut'on a pav .ing job or at a central mixing plant. I have previously described how as the skip moves upwards the rod 33 is actuated to release .the

register and operating disc 27 and restore thesame-to zero through the action of the rod 36, lever 37 and detent pawl 31. The

pin 34 which raises the rod 33'will escape from theshoulder 33* of the'rod bythe ac -tion of a cam 33 engaging-the abutment proof the diagonal struts jection 33 on one of the frame 1..

Reverting now to thev cement from the feed hopper 14 into of movement of; the upper portion ofeach 1 the lever 66, releases the door 14. and the each bucket 17 as it passes beneath said hopper, I note that the bottom door 14 of the hopper 14 has an extension 14 infthe path bucket 17-. Likewise this bottom door 14 has a side wing which is' notched to receive a projection on a trip lever 66, the exten- 'Sl0IlS',fl0IIl a side of the hopper 14 into the path of the pin 19 ofi-standin'g from the lower end of each bucket. Assuming that the hopper 14 is filled with a cubic foot or bag of cement therefore as each bucket passes upwardly with the conveyer; 16 its pin trips door gravitates and deposits the measured quantity of cement in the bucketnextbe: neath.- After the cement has gravitated into. such bucket,flthe samebucket by abuttingwith the door 14! raises the door again until it is latched by'tlie nah lever 66 which hasat this time escaped from the 'pin 19 of the next uppermost bucket and this action is continuous while the conveyer 16 is in operation.

Triple supply hopper. ha e sha ia in Figu same m chani m the operationof feeding which Iinay or may not use as desired for .the automatic movementof the triple supply hopper 11. .Thus .it willbe noted that I use 'av Geneva movement .69 which is dr1ven by bevel 'gearing'IO oncthe lower sprocket and operating shaft of the conveyer 16, see

Figure-2, as well as Figure 3. In'the oper a "quarter revoluti'orron each intermittent ation of the Geneva movement 69, the arm I 71 of the latter is caused to'revolve,mak1ng movement The said arm'71 is connected by a rod 72 with an: operating lever 73 that is I attachedby a link- .74 to an arm 75 secured to a side of .the supply hopper" 11 as the triple hopper 11 is moved to the left todischarge the receptacle C, the pin 76.on the feed hopper '14 will-strike the door tripping .l'ever f7 7 and through the toggle links 7 7 and ment A eifectedincident to the move-v ment of the triple, hopper 11 at the right, whereas the release of the doors of the receptacle G was performed incident of. the 'receptacle'C to-the left. The doors 7 8 are self closing by reason of the cooperation of their bottom cams with the edges or sides of the hopper'14, and during the movement of the particular empty compartment or receptacle .from' its position above the feeding hopper 14. With the trip ihopper 11in the positionshownin Figure 3, as the arm 71 moves through a quarter of itsarc of movement the trip hopper 11 will be moved to position the central compartment ,B above the feeding hopper 14. The trip pin 76 will strike the release lever 7 7 moving the same to the left and unlatching the latch mechanism 79, thereupon the spring 80 will cause the doors of the compartment B to swing downwardly and dump the contents of the compartment I intothe hopper 14. v

The reason for'the provlsion of -'a triple hopper 11 is to enable the men who feed the.cement tothe hopper or measuring de vice to have a numberof cubic feet or bags of'cement ready to discharge into the loader as the latter is moving. The triple hopper T 11 and its door controlling mechanism ma be dispensed with and ifdesired the bags of cement feed directly into the feeding hopperg '14. The men who do the feeding work will cut the strings'of the bags of cement just I before dumping them into the triple hop- C operation. ofmchine, -Assuming that the cement hopper 38 is I -filled'with a batch of cement, and the skip 4 upraised and is-moving downward to its Sub-grade position, at a predetermined time in the downward movement of the skip, the rod 57 will be operated to open the door 55, the spout leading from the hopper 38 haying been previously actuated by the skip bracket 7 through the arm 10, to assume a position above said skip. In this way, the.

cement is dumped into the skip 4 and the latter may receive the sand and stone aggregates in the usual way. The skip operating lever 51 is in released condition as respects the latch 52, because at this time, while the skip is down, the conveyor 16'is stopped.

The skip 4: may then be raised by actuating the lever 51 and as the skip rises the rod or bar 33 is operated to set the conveyer 16 intomotion, through the release and restoration of the registering and operating disc 27 from the detaining action of the pawl 31. The restoration of the disc 27 releases the clutch operating lever 39 and permits a spring 39 attached to said lever to move the same in such a manner as to throw in the.

clutch of the conveyer 16 by downward actuation of the rod 10 previously described. As the skip 1 rises, the door of the hopper is of course closed by the spring 59 and the spring shifts the spout 60 out of the path of the skip in its upward movement. The conveyer 16 now being in operation and its buckets 17 properly supplied with cement from the hopper 14, the conveyer Wlll move until, according to the adjustment of the pin 29 in Figure 8, six full buckets of cement are dumped into the hopper 38. At such time, the controlling and registering disc 27 will have been operated to move the pin 29 to rock the lever 39 and throw out the clutch which carries the drive from the engine' to the conveyer 16, through actuation of the clutch lever 42, see Figure 5. Thereupon the conveyer 16 will bestopped and a batch ofcement will be ready in the hopper.

38 to be discharged therefrom through the spout 60 into the skip 4, on the next down movement of the skip.

' In the above operation the register 25 may be observed to note the number of bags of cement indicated as comprising the batch,

and the register 25 will permanently record the complete batch as having been dumped into the hopper 38.

Cement and we're! measuring control.

I now pass to the construction of my in-' vention as embodied in Figure 12 which affords certain simplification of mechanism over that aspresented in the other" figures of the drawings. I again refer to the fact 60 that according toscientific exhaustive tests,

it has been definitely proved that the strength of concrete is deter inable by one basic factor. This factor is t e ratio of the volume of mixing water to the volume of cement, it being understood that the mix-tures when completed must be workable, such mixtures referring to the complete batch of aggregates. I have had in mind the foregoing determining factor controlling the strength of concrete in the development of the construction of my invention-now to be set forth. In Figure 12 I have illustrated at one side of the frame 1 of the machine, the conveyor 16 carrying the buckets 17 much as heretofore set forth, the buckets adapted to dump into the cement measuring hopper 38 which corresponds with that previously described but is adapted to (lump its charge of cement directly into the skip, or into the chute 62 that leads into the charging end of the mixer 2.. The measuring hopper 38 is equipped at its lower end with a discharge door 55 normally held closed by means of a catch capable of being-tripped out of engagement with the door by a trip arm 86.

The hopper 38 is peculiarly mounted in that it is supported by links 87 which are pivoted at one end to the hopper body and pivotally connected at the opposite end as shown at 88 to the frame 1 of the machine. The links 87 connect the hopper for true vertical movement relatively to the frame 1, the supporting of the hopper being accomplished by mounting the same pivotally at 89 upon a weighing beam 90 which is adjustably fulcrumed as at 91 upon a vertical standard 92 carried by the frame 1. The

that leads to ,an arm 99 projecting from the outer end of the weighing beam or lever 90. A connecting link 100 is adjustably at-' tached to the standard 92 and pivotally attaehed at 101 to the tank 92. For controlling the passing of water from the tank 92' down through the discharge pipe '102, I employ awing valve 103 in a valve casing 104 just beneath the tank 92. Said valve casing 104 has an outlet extension that telescopes in the upper end of the Water discharge pipe .102, the latter leading downwardly into the mixe drum 2 much as usually employed.

Connected with the operating arm 106 of the valve 103 is an operating rod 107 that has its lower end formed with a trip arm 108 in the path of upward movement of the skip 4. r The rod 107 has a shoulder or off-set 107' intermediate of its ends and a spring 109 normally tends to hold the rod 107 at its downward limit of movement maintaining the valve. 1 3 closed. The batchmeter 5 carried I struction of my invention, it is notable that 7' menses by the. frame l has' an operating arm 110 connected to a rod 111 attached to a bell cranklever 112. The lever 112 carries a dog 113 adapted to gravitatingly engage be;

neath the ofi-set 107 of the rod 107;

In the operation of the just described conwhen the measuring hopper 38 is. emptf and thetank 92 is empty, the weight of the tankwill be-sufiicient to overbalancc the h opper .38 and maintain it in raised position.

When the hopper 38" is supplied with the batch of cement which is to be a part of the batch of aggregates charged into the mixer. 2, the weight ofthe batch of cement in the hopper 38 will overbala'nce and raise the water tank 92 incident-to a rocking move-. ment of the beam 90. 'As the tank 92 is moved upwards the rocking of the beam 90 causes a movement of the rod 98 and opens communication 0 between the water main 93.-9 and the-tank 92. A supply of water v is thus received in the tank 92 which bears a .certainproportion to the weight'of cement; such proportion being calculated so that at 'thei'time the water received by the tank 92 balancesthe, weight ofthe'cement in the hopper 38!, the tank 92 will have moved downwardssufliciently to. cut ofl the flow of water thereto. Ato'such-timeya measured quantity of water of. a weight. predetermi'-- v nately related to'the weight. of the cement 38 will vbe-contained by the tank 92. The ship I 4 is then raised in-order to charge the ag-' gregates therein, and the cement in the hopper 38"- into ,the mixer 2," along with the i water fromthe tank 92.' As the 'skipgoes I Y latches the catch 85 and permits he door ofhopper 38 to open and the cement from f up. it vtravels the -arm struck thereby 86 un-.

' the hopper 1 flows therefrom 'to the chute 62 or mixer '2, as desired. Moreover, as the said skip rises, it strikes'fthelarm 108 of the valve actuating rod 107, raises and opens the valve 103 and the water in the tank 92 which isnowcut ofi from the water main 93 will feed through the pipe 102 into the mixing drum 2. The-skip having charged sis ti'me-aftersaid tank the aggregates into the. mixer. is permitted .to promptly return to its lowermost position and in fact it will have. reached said position about the time the water in 'the tank 92hasemptied into the'mixer 2 so that the upward pressure on the-rod 107 is relieved just as the-tank 92 is empty or some 92 is empty, this not being very materiaL' Such relief of'pressure on therod 107 permitsthe valve 103 to close again; Of coursefthe tank-92 'stays in its lower position until the conveyor-16 fills the hopper 38- and thereby causesla fresh supplyof water to enter the tank 92,,thr0ughthe elevation of the tank to its uppermost position by the weight oi cement, the water continuing to flow until the beam 90 holdsthe 1 shoulder 107.

tion as previously set forth.

cement and water in counterbalanced rela- In the use of my construction according to Figure 112, I throw the clutch of the conve'yer 16 to start the movement of the conveye-r during the downward movement of the skip instead of during its upward move ment as called Figure 1,

Operation of batchmeter.

. The-batchmeter control acts as follows." As the skip 4 is raised as previouslyset forth and'at acertain point in its movement the'dog113 engages beneath the ofl-sct or the rod returned to its lowermost position .by the spring 109, thereby trippin the bell crank lever 112' by engagement wit the dog 113 and setting the batchmeter 5 into opersn ation. The batchmeter 5 is of the known for by the mechanism of Then on the down movement of the skip, the pressure of the latteron the arm108 of the red 107 is relieved and type whichpredetermines or controlsthe mixing periodduring' whichthe aggregates are mixed inthe mixer 2. While the specific actuating connections for "the batchmeter just set forth are not important because the (if-parts, nevertheless the timing of the oper- It is essential under'the rules of certain state engineering departments thatall ingredients or-materials which go to make up voperation may be caused By difi'erent kinds ationof the batchmeter is of high impor- I tance to the invention and is-believed novel.

the batch of concrete, including the water, shall be in the mixer before the batchmeter is started into operation to control the mixing period. The operationof my-invention therefore as to the action of the'parts just mentioned conforms with the latest requirements in the above connection because the water supply which I have cooperation with the mixing machine and cement measuring instrumentalities may be modified, should'it be desiredto the extent that' a conventional type of water supply. could be used on mymachine Thus accord-- ing to theconstruction in Figure 1, I may use the customary watertank' arangements now employed on concrete mixing machines, the discharge valve to be actuated, for i-n-' "stance. by the upward movement of the rod 33 which starts the ,conveyerl6 into action,

and takes .place'on the rising movement of the skip 4 of Figure 1. I say this because l wish it to be understood that-my invention while involving the water supply and cement measuring features of Figure 12 is broader than this particular construction. Moreover, as to the Figure 12 construction, I do not wish to be conlined' to the weighin of the water in proportioning it to the we1ght of the cement because I may connect up with the hopper 38 a volume varying (lo-- vice for a water receptacle, and thus measure the water in gallon; instead of. by weight the effective action being much the same because a certain number of gallons of water will-weigh a predetermined amount which will be proportioned to the weight of the cement to conform with the requirement that the ratio of the volume of the mixing water to the volume of the cement shall be predetermined.

It is notable that I use any suitable power plant for the engine, preferably a gasoline engine, beneath the hood A, Figure 1, and

this power plant is'adapted to operate all of the various parts of the machine together with the cement measuring means employed in conjunction therewith,

lVhile I use an endless type conveyer 16 I do not wish to he confined thereto because device from the charging-means of the mixing machine, and stopping said device when itQhas conveyed a predetermined amount of material.

2. In combination, a concrete mixing machine, a cement measuringdevice therefor ..adapted to prcdeterminebatch quantities of materials, comprising a cement conveyor and measuring hopper supplied. thereby, and means to start and stop the action of the measuring device from the mixing machine.

3. In combination, a concrete mixing. ma.- chine, a cement conveyer for said machine, and automatic means controlling operation ofthe conveyer to supply the machine with a predetermined quantity of cement as part of aggregates to be mixed in the machine,

and cause the conveyor then to stop.

I may employ a different conveyer' device not having any endless belt or bucket, features. So far as I am aware I am the first to associate with a mixing machine, whether stationary or portable, a cement measuring device operating conjointly with the machine to supply measured quantities of cement thereto also such a device which counts the bags or cubic feet of cement and registers permanently the number of bags of cement handled in the machine; also.a cement measuring device associated with Water supply means in a mixing machine substantially as described.

It will be noted that the weight beam is adapted to be adjustably mounted on the fulcrum axis 9 by the provision of a plurality of openings 90' in said beam, also by the provision of openings 100 in the sup:-

porting link 100. The openings 90? and 100" permit of adjustment of the parts 90 and 100 in varying the relative proportions of the water handled by the tank 92 in relation to the quantity of cement handled by the hopper 38. 5

The registers 25 and 25 give/complete'information as to cement batch quantities and total batches and bags of cement handled.

The indications ofdisc 27 are carried by customary registering mechanism into registeri 25 to total the bag count, which the batch count is given on register 25"} Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the ,United States, is

1."In combination, a'concrete mixing machine, including aggregate charging means,

a cement. conveying device therefor, and

meansto cause operation of'the conveying chine, a charging device therefor, a cement conveyer for said machine, and means controlling operation of the conveyor to supply the machine with a predetermined quantity of cement aspart of aggregates. to be mixed in the machine, comprising the charging device of the mixing machine, and a measuring hopper arrangedto receive the measured cc-' ment from the conveyer, and means to discontinue action of the conveyor when a pre determinedamount 'of cement is fed to the hopper.

6. In combination, a concrete mixing machine, a charging device therefor, a cement conveyer for said machine, and means controlling operation of the conveyor to supply the machine with a predetermined quantity of cement as part of aggregates to be mixed in gfthe machine, comprising the-charging'device of the mixing machine, and a measur ing hopper arranged to receive the measured cement from the conveyenand means controlled by the charging means to discharge the hopper of cement.

7. In combination, a concrete mixing ma.- chine, comprising a mixer, and a. loading skip to charge the mixer with aggregates,

and means on the machine for measuring cement to be supplied to the mixer, and means totcontrol the cement measuring means from the loading skip, the measuring means including-fa conveyer on the machine, a measuring hopper tOTGCGlVG the cement from the conveyer, and means to discharge/the hopper in supplying the cement to the mixer.

8. In combination, a concrete mixing ma-"T chine, comprising a mixer, and a t-loading? ski to charge the mixer with aggregates, an means on the machine for measuring cement to be supplied to the mixer, and means to control the cement measuring means from the loading skip, the measuring means including a conveyer on the machine, a measuring hopper to receive the cement from the conveyor, and automatic means to discharge the hopper in supplying the ce ment to the mixer and controlled from the loading 'skip.

9. In combination, a concrete mixing machine, comprising a mixer, a charging device therefor, an engine for operating the same, and a cement measuring device for supplying cement for mixture with other aggregates in the mixer, and operable by said engine, the measuring device including an endless conveyor for elevating the cementto supply the mixer, anda measuring hopper to receive the cement from the conveyer.

10. In combination, a concrete mixing machine, comprising a mixer, a charging device therefor, an enginefor operating the same, and a cement measuring device for supplying cement for mixture with other aggregates in the mixer, and operable by said engine, the measuring device including an endless conveyer for elevating the cement to supply, the mixer, and a measuring hopper to receive the cement from the conveyer, a

discharge for the hopper, and means operated by the charging device for controlling the hopper discharge.

11. In combination, a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for said machine,

and means controlling operation of the con veyer to supply the machine With a predetermined quantity of cement as part of aggregates to be mixed in the machine, and water supply means for the mixing machine operably controlled by the conveyer.

- 12. In combin'atioma concrete mixing ma chine, a coacting cement measuring device therefor, and a water measuring device operable to introduce water into the mixing machine simultaneously with the cement :gmeasurmg device, and a common actuator forthe two devices.

13. In combination, aconcrete mixer, means for charging concrete aggregates into the mixer, a cementme'asuring device associated with the mixer, a'water measuring device also associated with the anixer, and means for operating said two measuring devices, from the charging means aforesaid, and controlling connections intermediate the cement measuring device and the water measuring device to coordinate the volume of mixing water supplied by the water-measuring device with the volume of cement supplied by thecement measuring device. 14. In combination, a concrete mlxmg machine comprising a i mglng drum and water and cement measuring devices mounted on said-machine for supplying said drum with water and cement respectively, and automatic means for causing complete measured quantities of the cement and water from the water and cement measuring devices to be supplied to the mixing drum, at the same time. i a

15. In combination, a mixing machine comprising a mixing drum, a water measur ing device, and a cement measuring device,

means for supplying to the cement measuring device, and means for supplying water from the water measuring device to the mix ing drum in variable volumetric proportions according to the weight of cement handled.

by the measuring device, and means for causing the cement from the measuring device to pass into the mixing drumj 16. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, ,a mixing drum, a cement measur ing device to supply said drum with the measured quantity of cement, a water measuring device for supplying said drum with water, and controlling means between the cementmeasuring device and the water measuring device to proportion the amount of water supplied to the drum by the water measuring device to the weight of the cement supplied from the cement measuring device; 17. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a mixing drum, a cement measuring device to supply said drum with the measured quantityof cement, a water measuring device for supplying-said drum with water, and controlling means between the cement measuring device and the Water measuring device to proportion the amount of water supplied to the drum by the water measuring device to the'weight of the cament supplied from the cement measuring device; and means for varying the relative vproportions of the cement and water supplied to the drum from the respective cement and water measuring devices.

18. In a'concrete mixing machine, in combination, the mixing drum, a cement measuring hopper to supply cement thereto, a conveyer for supplying a measured quantity of cement to the measuring hopper, water supply means for the drum, and means common 'to the hopper and the water supply means for operating the cement and water supply means to cause the passing of the cement and water therefrom into the drum.

19. In a concrete mixingmachine, incombination, the mixing drum, a cement measurveyer for supplying a measured quantity ofcement to the measurin'g'hopper, water supply means for the drum, and means common to the hopper and the water supply'means for controlling the passing of the cement and water therefrom into thedrum, and a loading skip forcharging supplied aggreing hopper to supply cementthereto',-a con- 7 drum thereon, a cement convey-er adapted to receive cement to convey the sameto a position for charging 1n the drum, and control means for the conveyer for measuring the quantity of cement handled thereby and sub seguently charged into the drum therefrom, said conveyer inclining from a relatively low point on the frame to a higher point of discharge, and a measuring hopper to receive the measured quantity of cement handled by the conveyer and supply the same to the drum.

22. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a mixer, a conveyer adapted to supply cement to the mixer means for op-= crating the conveyer and mixer, and control means for the conveyer for measuring the quantity of cement supplied thereby to the mixer and then discontinuing the operation of the conveyer, and means for-stopping and starting the conveyer automatically in relation to the operation of themixer, by said control means.

23. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a-mixing drum, a bucket conveyer associated therewith and having buckets each adapted to receive the contents of a bag of cement, operating means-fforthe mixer and the conveyer adapted td-Operatetheconveyer to carry the cement in the buckets to a position for charging into the drum, and means for controlling the conveyer to predetermine the. number of buckets of cement .to'be charged into the drum therefrom.

24. In a concrete mixing machine, in C'Olll bination, a mixing drum, a bucket. conveyer associated therewith and having buckets each adapted to receive the contents of a bag of cement, operating means for the mixer and the conveyer adapted to operate the conveyer to carrythe cement in the buckets to a position for charging into the drum, and means for controlling'j'the conveyer to predetermine' the number of buckets of cement to be charged into the drum therefrom, and registeringmeans'for registering the quantity of cement charged into the drum by the conveyer.

25. In a concrete mixing machine, in comfrom the cement measuring device, and

thereby indicating the number of specific quantities supplied to the mixer.

26. In a concrete mixing machine,'in combination, a mixer, a cement measuring device therefor, means for supplying cement to the measuring device, means for supplying measured quantities of cement from the cement measuring device to'the mixer, and means for registering the batches of cement thus supplied to the mixer from the cement measuring device, and means for indicating the number of bags of cement in each batch of cement handled by the cement measuring device.

27. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a mixer, cement supply and meas uring means for measuring a given number of specific quantities of cement therefor comprising instrumentalities for definitely measuring the amount of cement to be supplied to the mixer for each batch of other solid aggregates for making concrete, and recording means for counting the batches of cement handled by the measuring instrumentality aforesaid and thereby indicating quantities of the number of specific quantities supplied to the mixer.

28. In a mixing machine, in combination, a mixer. a water supply means for the mixer, a cement measuring device for the mixer, means for operating said Water supply means, and cement measuring device to charge the mixer with watem and cement, respectively therefrom, a batchmeter, and means to cause passage of water and cement from the respective water supply and cement measuring devices, and for operating the batehmeter after the Water and cement are supplied to the mixer.

29. In a concrete mixing machine, a mixer, a cement measuring device, a loading skip, means for operating the measuring device to measure-a batch of cement to be supplied to the mixer and controlling connections between said measuring device and the loading skip for causing operation and discontinu= ing operation of the measuring device.

30. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a mixer, and acement measuring device, associated therewith, and means for operating the cement measuring device, said measuring device comprising a yieldably supported cement holding receptacle, and recording means for recording measured quantities of cement handled by the measur ing device and operable from the said receptacle only when thesame is filled with I cement.

, 31. In a concrete mixingmachine,in combination, a mixer, a cement measuring dc.- vicetherefor comprising a conveyer, a ccment feeding hopper for the conveyer and means operable by the conveyer for causing cement in the hopper to be supplied to the conveyer automatically and incident to movement of the conveyer.

32. In a concrete mixing machine, incombination, a mixer, a cement measuring device therefbr comprising a conveyer,a cement feeding hopper for the conveyer and means operable by the conveyer for causing cement in'the hopper to be supplied to the conveyer automatically and incident to movement of the conveyer, and a plural compartment supply hppper operable to progressively supply cement from any one of its hoppers to the feedinghopper' aforesaid.

33. In a concrete mixing machine, in combination, a mixer, a cement measuring device therefor comprising a conveyer, a cement feeding hopper for the conveyer and means operable by the conveyer for causing cement in the hopper'to be supplied to the conveyer automatically 'and incident to movement of theconveyer, and a plural compartment supply hopper operable to progressively supply cement from any one of its hoppers to the feeding hopper aforesaid, and automatic means for shiftingthe plural supply hopper to bring its compartments-progressively to a position for supplying cement to the feeding hopper, and then discharge the positioned compartment into .said feeding hopper.

34., In a concrete mixing machine, a mixer, and means' for,charg ng concrete aggregates into the machine including a cement measuring device fonmeasurin'g a given number of specific quantities of cement, and a register for registering the measured quantities of cement handledby said device.

35. In a concrete mixing, machine, in combination, a mixer and means for charging vaggregates into the mixer for. mixture therein, including a cement measuring device for measuring a given number of specific uantities of cement, said device einbo yi'ng counting means for countingthe bag quantities of cement handled and included in a batch consisting of the said bag quantities.

36. In a concrete mixingmachine, in com bination, a mixer, and means for charging aggregates into the mixer for mixture therein including a cement measuring device for measuring a given number of specific quantities of cement, said device embodying countin means for counting the bag quan-a tities o cement handled, which quantities are included in batches handled by the mixer, and means for registering each measured quantity of cement charged into the mixer as a' batch quantity substantially as described.

'37. In combination, a concrete mixing machine comprising amixer, and an aggregates batch charger, a water measuring device,-a-ce1nent measuring device controlling the first measuring device, means'to discharge the measuring devices into the mixer,

chine comprising a mixer, and an aggregates batch charger, a water measurin device, a cement measuring device contrdlling the first measuring device, means to discharge the measuring devices into the mixer, and means controlling replenishment and discharge, and a batchmeter operable after the discharge of said measuring devices, under the control of the charger.

40. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the machine, power means to operate the mixing machine and conveyer, and automatic means to stopt-he conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine.

41. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the machine, power means to operate the mixing machine and conveyer, and automatic means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantityof cement to said machine, and aggregate charging means for the mixing machine cooperative with the conveyer to start the same into operation.

42. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixin with other a re ates in the ma-' C DE! C chine, power means .to operate the mixing machlne and conveyer, and automatlc means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine,

and aggregate charging means-for the mix- ,ing machine cooperative with the conveyer to start the same into operatlon, and means to register each certain quantity of cement ted to, the machine for mixing therein.

'ios

0 43. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the machine, power means to operate the mixing machine and conveyer, and automatic means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine, and aggregate charging means for the mixing machine cooperative with the conveyer to start-the same into operation, instrumentalities for supplying to the machine water of a quantity properl proportioned by the cement fed to the machine.

44. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, acement conveyer for. feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the machine, power means to operate the mixing machine and conveyer,and automatic means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine, other aggregate charging means for the machine, and water supply means operable by the cement handled by the conveyer so that water of a required quantity is controllably supplied to the machine. I

45. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the machine, power means to operate the mixing machine and conveyer, and automatic means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine, other aggregate charging means for-the machine, and water supply means operable by the cement handled by the conveyer so that gates water of a required quantity is controllably supplied to the machine, with means between the said other aggregatecharging means and thewater and cement supply instrumentalities to cause these to enter the machine. I

46. In combination with a concrete mixing machine, a cement conveyer for feeding a certain required quantity of cement for mixing with other aggregates in the ma chine, powermeans to operate the mixing machine and conveyer, and automatic means to stop the conveyer when it has fed said certain quantity of cement to said machine, other aggregate charging means for the machine, and water supply means operable by the cement handled by the conveyer so that water of a required quantity is controllably supplied to the machine anda batchmeter control for the machine suitable to operate after the cement and water have been'supplied to the machine with the other aggreby the operation of the other aggregate charging means.

. 7. In combination, a concrete mixing ma- I chine comprising a mixing drum, a conveyaeeaeee ing device for feeding a certain predetermined amount of cement for mixing in said drum, means for charging other aggregates into the drum, a water charging device for said drum mechanism whereby the cement,

water and other aggregates are supplied to ing a cement measuring and conveying device for conducting cement in a predetermined quantity to the drum for mixing therein, a water charging device for the drum cooperative with said cement measuring and conveying device so that the amount of water dispensed to the drum by said water charging device will be proportioned to ,the quantity of cement charged into the drum, and operating means for the, cement measuring and conveying device for discontinuing its operation when a predetermined quantity ,of cement to be charged into the drum has been supplied.

49. In combination, a concrete mixing drum, aggregates charging means including a cement measuring and conveying device for conducting cement in a predetermined quantity to the drum for mixing therein, a

,water charging device for the drum cooperative with said cement measuring and conveying device so that the amount of water dispensed to the drum by said water charging device will be proportioned to the quantity of cement charged into the drum, and operating means for the cement measuring and conveying device for discontinuing its operation when a predetermined quantity of cement to be charged into the drum has been supplied, and a larger aggregates charging device arranged to cause the cement. supplied by the cement conveying device, and

the water proportioned in accordanee'therewith to pass into the drum for admixture with the larger. aggregates.

50. In combination, a mixing machine, a cement elevating and conveying device associated therewith and having means to carry separate predetermined quantities of cement to a charging point for the mixing machine and means to operate the elevating and conveying device intermittently to bring a 'number of said predetermined quantities of cement to the charging point to form a batch for introduction into the machine, and

"means for registering each batch. of cement thus prepared for charging into the machine and each individual quantity of! thosehandled by the cement elevating and conveying device. J

51. In combination, a mixing machine, a

cement elevating and conveying .device associated therewith and having means to carry separate predetermined quantities of cement to a charging point for the mixing machine and means to operate the elevating and conveying device intermittently to bring anumber of said predetermined quantities of cement to the charging point to form a batch for introduction into the machine, and means for registering each batch of cement thus prepared for charging into the machine and each individual quantity of those handled by the cement elevating and conveying device, and means for supplying the cement elevating and conveying device consisting of a series of hoppers together with mechanism for shifting said hoppers in filled condition in relation to the conveying device to successively discharge the hoppers onto the latter.

52. In combination, a mixing machine, a

cement hopper for holding a predetermined batch of cement to charge into the machine, means for feeding the cement in predetermined quantities to the hopper to cause bodily movement of the latter, and water measuring means comprising a tank and water inflow connections therefor operatively connected with the cement hopper so that the movement of the latter controls the supply of a measured quantity of Water to the tank ready to be charged into the mixing machine. a

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

JOHN F. ROBB. 

